Love Conquers All!
by Space-Case7029
Summary: Maeve's return to Sinbad and the crew. All unite to defeat Rumina and return Dermott to his true form. MS pairing. Ignores most of second season happenings. Chs. 1 & 2 revised, Ch. 3 is new.
1. Reunion of Friends

The Adventures of Sinbad 

Disclaimer: I own none of these characters. If I did the 2nd season would have been completely different.

Author's Note: This is set after the 2nd season, Sinbad's in love with Maeve, always has been. I don't think he'd have given up on Maeve as easily as was written in the show. This story ignores most of what they had happen romantically between Sinbad and Bryn. In this story they are just good friends and Bryn knows how Sinbad feels about Maeve. Maeve returns to the _Nomad_. Mind-speak is in _"italics"_. Hope you enjoy the story.

**LOVE CONQUERS ALL!**

_**Chapter 1: Reunion of Friends**_

The handsome young captain stood at the railing of the _Nomad_ looking out across the calm blue sea, but his thoughts were in the past. He was thinking of his beautiful sorceress whom he hadn't seen in a little over a year and a half, ever since Dim-Dim took her to a secret place where she would be safe while finishing her training. Sinbad had an unpleasant surprise a couple of months before, when Scratch tricked him into thinking that Maeve was a prisoner in the underworld, only to find out it was a trick so Scratch and Rumina could trap him and his crew. After getting away from Scratch's chamber, they found out that Maeve was still with Dim-Dim because she was able to use her magic to communicate with them long enough to reassure her friends that she was safe. Hearing her voice after so long, rekindled all the feelings Sinbad had for her from where he'd buried them when she disappeared. He didn't know exactly where she was, but he was positive he would see her again.

A squawk sounding nearby interrupted Sinbad's thoughts of Maeve. Turning he saw Bryn coming toward him, with Dermott on her arm, and smiled at them. The hawk was a perpetual reminder to him of Maeve's absence, and at the same time, one of the reasons Sinbad knew he'd see Maeve again. On the other hand, Bryn's magical powers had helped out in times of crisis, though she didn't have the control Maeve did.

Bryn smiled back at Sinbad thinking that he looked sad and lonely. She was beginning to worry. All too often lately she had caught him with a pensive look on his face.

_"He misses Maeve, Bryn."_ Dermott's thoughts entered her head, as he picked up on hers.

_"I know Dermott, but I can't do anything to bring her back." _Bryn thought back to the hawk, at the same time noticing an odd look cross the captain's face as he tilted his head a bit while glancing toward the two of them.

_"He can't either; that's what upsets him most."_

Sinbad started to ask them to join him, when a stiff breeze blew around the ship causing everyone to shiver, as Bryn and Sinbad's bracelets glowed briefly before fading back to normal. Bryn stumbled, nearly falling to the deck while Dermott flew from her arm to land on the relative safety of the main sail. When Sinbad grabbed her arm to steady her, Doubar, Firouz and Rongar came running to see what was wrong.

"Are you okay? What just happened?" Sinbad asked, a frown marring his brow.

Bryn answered, "I'm all right, I just felt a little dizzy. That was no ordinary breeze. It was caused by a conflict between good and evil magic, coming from that way." While speaking, she pointed in the direction that the ship was sailing.

Looking the way Bryn indicated, the others noticed a dot on the distant horizon. Firouz grabbed his magnascope from his belt to see what the dot could be. Checking, he reported, "We're coming up on an island."

Bryn focused her mind on the distant point then, shivering, said, "That's where the conflict is playing out right now."

"Well let's stop and see what's going on. Maybe there's something we can do to help," said the captain.

_On the island_

Maeve, Sinbad's red-haired sorceress, was fighting the evil Rumina's skeleton warriors. Maeve was holding out against them, but tiring quickly, and she had to rely mostly on her sword skill, because the number of warriors converging on her position didn't give her time to use much magic. Rumina smugly watched from her mirror pool in the safety of a distant cave. She was pleased that her archenemy was losing the fight without the help of that meddlesome sailor and his crew.

When Sinbad and his friends landed on the island in a longboat, they heard sounds of a battle in the distance. Hurrying to see what was happening, they had to climb a low hill to even get within sight of the confrontation.

From the top of the hill, Sinbad and the others saw a lone figure fighting the skeleton warriors and quickly ran to the unknown person's aid, drawing their swords as they went. Sinbad began dispatching skeleton warriors left and right as he waded into the fray. Doubar alternated between smashing warriors using his brute strength and slashing them in half with his sword. Rongar used both small dirks and sword effectively, taking down numerous warriors. Bryn forced some back using her semi-controlled powers, then fought others that were closer with her sword. After Firouz used all of his exploding sticks to take out as many as he could, he had to rely on his limited sword-fighting ability. He quickly began to be overpowered by ten warriors when out of nowhere Rongar jumped in to help.

With their arrival, some of the strain was taken off Maeve so she was able to throw a volley of fireballs taking out more warriors. The unexpected fireballs surprised the crew and they all thought of Maeve at the sight of the magic. None, however, were able to clearly see who they were helping without risking being overwhelmed by their opponents. In a matter of moments, however, the army was defeated. Perturbed by the interference of the Nomad crew, Rumina angrily cleared the pool of its reflection and vowed, "This isn't the end my little peasant sorceress. We'll meet again."

While everyone was catching his or her breath, Maeve said, "Thanks, I don't know how much longer I could've held out."

At the sound of her voice, Sinbad quickly turned and glanced up to see the red-haired sorceress of so many of his thoughts lately, both waking and sleeping. Maeve was wearing her usual white top with the brown leather dress over it, but with the addition of dark brown leather pants underneath. Upon the realization that it really was Maeve, he called to her. Maeve looked up in time to see Sinbad's beloved face just before he embraced her.

"Sinbad?" she questioned wonderingly while returning the embrace.

Before he could say anything else, Doubar and the others had come to greet their long-absent friend. Doubar, Firouz and Rongar each gave the red-haired woman hugs, though Doubar was a little over-exuberant, leaving her slightly breathless again. When they had finished, Bryn came forward with Dermott, "Hi, I'm Bryn. From the way he's acting, I believe he wants to be back with you now." She said holding out the hawk, then moving slightly away, undisturbed by Dermott's wish to be with the other woman.

"Dermott!" Maeve exclaimed, stroking his feathers when he moved to one of the leather cuffs around her arm. _"I've missed you, brother."_ Maeve thought to the hawk.

_"I've missed you, too, sister,"_ came the welcome answer.

"We've all missed you, Maeve, not just Dermott," Sinbad softly stated from behind, startling her.

"How…?" But Maeve never got to complete her question.

"Let's get back to the ship, everyone!" Sinbad called, interrupting her query. Maeve caught his eye with a questioning look while the crew obeyed Sinbad's order. He gave her a simple smile accompanied by a slight shake of his head. Maeve decided not to press the issue knowing that he would explain later.

_Back on the Nomad_

Sinbad gave the orders necessary for the _Nomad_'s departure from the island. Once they were underway, he escorted Maeve below to her cabin.

Maeve stopped, astonished, in the doorway just looking at her cabin, while Dermott flew across the room to land on the perch that was still in there. She'd half-expected that Bryn would have taken over her room but it looked as if nothing had been touched.

Wondering where the petite brunette stayed, her natural curiosity finally got the upper hand. Adopting an innocent look as she moved into the cabin, she casually asked, "I figured you'd have given Bryn my room, where does she sleep?"

"She has Rongar's old cabin. He and Firouz have been sharing," was the captain's quiet reply from the doorway. "Maeve, how long ago did you finish training with Dim-Dim? Why were you on that island, instead of coming back to us?"

Maeve, wandering farther into her cabin, answered, "I wasn't sure where the Nomad was exactly, Sinbad. When I was first taken away by Dim-Dim, I could feel your presence strongly and pinpoint where the ship was, but after talking to all of you six months ago, after you thought Scratch had me prisoner, you calmed down and stopped dwelling on where I was, so it became harder to feel your emotions, but I could find you because of your bracelet. When I was finished with my training, I could feel Rumina was closer, and since I had unfinished business with her, I decided to go after her and then find you and the crew. Sinbad could we wait about any more of this story until Bryn and our friends are with us? This involves everyone; I would rather tell the story once and be finished."

"Would you rather be alone for awhile then?" Sinbad queried with a quizzical look.

"Actually, could we talk about what you said on the island?"

"You mean about all of us missing you." Sinbad stated instinctively following her train of thought.

Maeve nodded absently, "I didn't think anyone could pick up my thoughts with Dermott, except maybe Bryn."

Sinbad stepped further into the room and closed the door for privacy. Maeve sat on the bed waiting expectantly. He sat beside her, glancing around a moment unsure how to begin his explanation.

"I'm not really sure how it happened. I've been picking up on Dermott's thoughts for a while even before you disappeared. It shocked me the first time. You had gone off to practice your magic and the others had been captured. Dermott came back to where I was and he just stared at me then I saw pictures in my mind of Doubar and knew he needed my help."

Maeve smiled in remembrance, "I sent him back to you, but wasn't sure if you'd understand him."

"I did," Sinbad replied. "After that I picked up odd thoughts from him at various times, usually when you weren't around, even before Dim-Dim took you away. When Alana sent you overboard, while we were looking for the Isle of Bliss, Dermott came back to the ship from searching for you and I asked if he'd found you. I could have sworn that I heard him answer 'No' in my head."

The sorceress glanced at her captain curiously, "Do the others know you've been hearing him?"

"I didn't tell anyone. Dermott hasn't seemed inclined to tell Bryn, or she would have mentioned it, I think." Sinbad grinned ruefully, "It's almost funny thinking about a hawk choosing certain things to divulge but there's a difference to Dermott that I've noticed more since you've been away, especially since he's been 'talking' to me more while you were gone."

Maeve glanced hesitantly at Sinbad contemplating whether to finally reveal the truth about Dermott. "Umm, Sinbad?" she hesitated a moment, "Dermott's different … because he's not really a hawk."

"What do you mean?" Sinbad frowned at her.

"He's my brother." Seeing the shocked look on the captain's face, Maeve began explaining in a breathless rush. "Rumina was infatuated with him a long time ago, but he rejected her making her extremely angry. She turned him into a hawk; I vowed revenge and that's why we're antagonistic with each other. If I defeat her, Dermott will become a man again. I was going to tell you this over a year ago, but the storm came…and you know what happened then." As Maeve came to a stumbling halt, Sinbad silently mulled over her story.

Maeve feared that he was very angry with her, when he asked softly, "So that's why you were training with Dim-Dim and why you've always been so intent in your learning?"

Maeve nodded, watching the young captain uncertainly. Suddenly he grinned broadly and chuckled, reaching out to hug Maeve, he stated, "Well, that explains why you were so upset when you saw Dermott after he dropped the jewel in Rumina's cave, not to mention the other times that we thought she was defeated and wasn't, and, at least, I don't have to be jealous of your feelings for him anymore." With that said, he kissed the sorceress on her cheek then stood up.

Maeve sat in open-mouthed shock, as Sinbad started for the door. "Wait a minute… why would you be jealous of Dermott?" She exclaimed to a now empty room.

Outside the cabin door, Sinbad smiled slightly at her tirade and continued on his way above deck; relieved at avoiding the question and not having to reveal his as yet unspoken love.


	2. Plans of Action

_**Chapter 2: Plans of Action**_

When Sinbad came back above deck, he relieved Doubar at the tiller. A short while later he watched as Maeve reappeared and moved to the front railing to enjoy the fresh sea breeze rushing through her hair. Maeve could feel the captain's eyes on her, but didn't join him, as she would have done before, still being slightly perturbed with him for leaving their discussion so abruptly. Regardless of his sister's current feelings toward Sinbad, Dermott took off and flew across the deck to rest on one of his favorite spots, which happened to be the post above the captain.

Sensing someone behind her, Maeve quickly spun around, half-expecting Sinbad; but instead facing Bryn, who was hesitantly smiling at her. Maeve smiled back at the petite brunette thinking they could easily become friends, again, because she was pretty sure that she'd known the other girl before, even though, she couldn't put her finger on why she believed it so strongly since she couldn't remember the brunette.

Bryn joined Maeve at the railing, feeling a sense of peace with the red-head's presence that she'd never felt with another woman in the year and a half she'd been aboard the _Nomad_, and asked, "Why are you up here by yourself?"

"Everyone's busy and I'm not in the mood to talk to our captain again right now." Maeve replied without thinking.

"What happened?"

"Oh, we were talking below and he told me…" Maeve suddenly realized what she was saying and finished, "something that aggravated me." She thought, _'I'm glad I didn't tell her exactly what he told me.'_

At the same time Bryn was thinking, _'Sinbad must have really stuck his foot in his mouth to make Maeve this angry. From what the others have told me, he really had to screw up to incur her wrath.'_

Deciding to let Sinbad get in an argument later with Maeve over whatever trouble he caused, Bryn changed the subject asking, "Where have you been since you were taken from the ship?"

"You knew I was with my teacher, Dim-Dim?" Maeve asked, receiving an affirmative nod from Bryn.

"Dim-Dim is on an island where Turok, Rumina's father, sent him. He can't leave the island but can still use his magic. He has part of the island protected from Rumina's prying eyes. That's where he kept me safe from being attacked by her until I completed my training."

"Could you teach me to control my powers?" Bryn hesitantly asked, "I'm able to force people away from me or down like they've hit a wall, but I may throw them too hard or not hard enough. I, also, can't always control where they go, I'm liable to make someone we're fighting hit one of the guys."

Maeve patiently waited for Bryn to finish then replied, "I'll help you as much as I can, although I really don't feel qualified to be a teacher. Maybe we can get you enough control over your powers to help defeat Rumina and Turok. When Dim-Dim comes back to us, he can fully train you."

"That would be wonderful." Bryn's eyes radiated happiness.

The two women lapsed into a temporary silence enjoying the peacefulness of the ship gliding smoothly through the water. Soon Bryn asked, "How did you first meet Sinbad and the crew?" She watched Maeve closely for any adverse reaction.

Maeve looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "Sinbad came to Master Dim-Dim's island. We didn't get many visitors, so I caught any trespassers on the beach before they could find and harm Dim-Dim, but he was expecting Sinbad. Sinbad left the crew to gather food and water, while he went to fetch Dim-Dim. He had to defend himself from Dermott's attack when he got close to me and he ended up on his back in a field with my sword pointed at him. He was surprised at being brought down by a woman and tried to retake control of the situation. I knew who he was from Dim-Dim's stories about his former pupils. I took him to Dim-Dim reluctantly; I knew he had a fondness for the women. Dim-Dim was happy to see him. Sinbad needed his help to rescue the fiancée of the son of the Caliph of Baghdad, which Dim-Dim already knew, and Dim-Dim agreed as long as I was allowed to come with them. The crew protested that it was unlucky having a woman aboard, but Dim-Dim had appealed to Sinbad's sense of fairness regarding me. He, also, told him that we were alike in many ways. He said we both had secrets in our pasts that were painful. We didn't get along at all; we fought over every little thing. I became close friends with the others fairly quickly, especially Doubar and he was the main protestor about unlucky females. Eventually, Sinbad and I overcame our differences and became good friends."

Maeve looked at Bryn curiously, "I told you my beginning. How did you become part of the _Nomad_'s crew?"

Bryn started, "I came upon Sinbad when he washed to shore after jumping overboard to rescue you." She smiled remembering, "When he came around, he looked up, dreaming, and called me Maeve. I told him no, I was Bryn. We had to run from the islanders, who were chasing me to use as a sacrifice. When we met the others looking for Sinbad, the first thing he asked was if they had found you, they said they hadn't seen you or Dermott. Sinbad had them continue looking for you and when we met back on the ship, Doubar held out your gauntlet, saying that was all they'd found. From the look on Sinbad's face and in his eyes, I could tell that you were very important to him. Sinbad took the glove and moved to the railing by himself, Dim-Dim talked to him and said that you were safe with him and had to remain there until you completed your training. Sinbad was relieved to know you were safe, but in the last year and a half he acted as if there was something missing in his life and he has been guarded with his thoughts and feelings. It has, also, affected how he treated women in ports where we stopped. From what I've seen and heard from the others I think, it was his way of trying to keep any pain from his separation with you at bay. After seeing his reaction to finding you today, I think the _Nomad_ is going to be getting its old captain back."

The two women chatted aimlessly, mostly about things that occurred during the last year and a half, while getting better acquainted. Both women had a feeling that they had a connection sometime during their pasts, but they couldn't remember. Neither one realized the captain's watchful eye was on them as he enjoyed the sight of Maeve being back on board where he believed she belonged. Sinbad was pleased to see the two women getting along so well, but wondered how long Maeve would stay mad about his running away from their conversation earlier.

Looking up at the hawk, he silently asked, "_Well, Dermott. You know your sister, how long do you think it will be before I can talk to her again without her biting my head off for leaving her cabin earlier in the middle of our talk."_

Cocking his head in typical fashion, the hawk replied, _"Sinbad, you know her as well as I do. Maeve's quick to anger, but she calms down easily, especially with you. If she didn't, you'd have been toast long ago."_

At Dermott's answer, Sinbad laughed, capturing the attention of everyone on the deck, but, most especially, the woman the comment had been about. Picking up the captain's thoughts to her brother didn't shed any light on what had been so funny, since all Sinbad thought was, _"You're right about that, my friend."_ Realizing that Sinbad's connection with her brother was strong enough for him to send his own thoughts to the hawk, reminded Maeve of what Dim-Dim had said that she'd have to reveal about the captain's mainly unrealized magical powers.

_Later that evening_

The chief crew of the _Nomad_ gathered around the table in the main cabin to hear Maeve's story. All of them were curious about what had happened and why Maeve didn't come straight to the ship when she finished her training.

Maeve struggled to put everything together in her mind before starting the tale. Dermott sitting on a nearby perch thought, _"Just relax and everything will come together."_ as her brother's message concluded, she heard Bryn's reassurance, _"Dermott's right, Maeve. All of these men love you and missed you while you were gone. They just want to know what's going on and you know how they all love a good fight."_ Thankful for their support, the sorceress was aware that Sinbad had, also, heard their thoughts as their eyes locked and he nodded his agreement with a reassuring grin.

Slowly, the explanation began. "You know Rumina and I never got along. Dim-Dim spent a long time teaching me what I needed to know in order to defeat her. I have a score to settle with her that is ages old. The only way to settle that score was to complete my training and that's the reason I was taken away by Dim-Dim." Maeve continued to tell her friends what had happened to her and Dim-Dim while she was away from the _Nomad_ and that Turok was still alive. When she'd finished telling about the time she was gone, she paused for a breath before concluding, "The only problem is that I can't fight Rumina and her minions alone, the fight you rescued me from against her skeleton warriors today proved that much. Now that I'm back here, I need all the help I can get to ensure Rumina's defeat."

Bryn spoke up. "What do we need to do to defeat Rumina, exactly?"

"When you've gotten better control over your powers, we could attack her with Sinbad's help while everyone else takes care of the skeleton warriors. Is that agreeable?" Maeve hesitantly looked around the table for everyone's reactions.

Sinbad nodded and said, "We'll help in any way we can, right everyone?" Looking around the table, everyone added their agreement. All of them liked a good fight, especially when it helped someone close to them.

"Where do we find Rumina?" Doubar asked.

"I have a feeling she'll find us. Hopefully she'll stay away, until Bryn and I are ready for the confrontation." Maeve replied ruefully.


	3. Training for a Purpose

Author's note: Thank you to Maevezanar for the idea in your review. It helped pave the way for what Maeve does to Sinbad later in this chapter.

_**Chapter 3: Training for a Purpose**_

_A week later on the Nomad_

"Try it again, Bryn." Maeve encouraged the dark-haired sorceress. Bryn looked at a dummy figure they'd set up for a target. Concentrating hard, her eyes glowed a bright yellow. Suddenly, twin beams of light shot from her eyes and hit the target, knocking it backwards into the net. For the first time everyone on deck cheered, because the target hit the net instead of Rongar who was winding rope nearby.

"That's great, Bryn!" Maeve encouraged the petite woman. "Now, try this!" At that, the red-haired sorceress sent the stuffed figure hurtling back toward the dark-haired girl, who deflected it, sending it reeling to tumble over the side of the ship, while the others watched.

Expecting the dummy to fall into the ocean below, they were slightly surprised to see it stay suspended in mid-air, with Bryn focusing intently on it. After a few moments, it was brought back over the ship to come to a rest on deck standing against the mast.

When Bryn relaxed her concentration, she turned toward Maeve with a huge smile lighting her face. The red-haired sorceress grabbed her in a hug while exclaiming, "That was perfect, Bryn. I knew you could do it."

She let go of her new friend when Sinbad came over to place a hand on each girl's shoulder while, also, congratulating Bryn. As the others made their way to talk to her, Sinbad let go of Bryn's shoulder, but left his other hand resting on Maeve's.

After Bryn stepped away to talk with the other men, Maeve turned naturally toward Sinbad, moving close to him and wrapping her arms around his waist. The captain was pleasantly surprised and, in an effort to prolong the contact, closed his own arms around her to bring her even closer. They were so absorbed in their embrace that they were unaware of anything else going on around them, until they both heard a voice in their heads.

_"Okay, you two. I think that's enough. The others will notice in another moment, so if you still want to try denying how you feel about each other, you'd better stop right now."_ In an uncharacteristic move for him, since being turned into a hawk that is, Dermott continued, _"Personally, I'd be happier if you'd just admit it and stop sneaking around. Everyone already knows that you're in love with each other; we're just waiting for you to admit it. Before either of you protest, remember we saw you kiss after Sinbad defeated the Vorgon and we all reappeared."_

"Dermott! Why don't…" Maeve's exclamation was abruptly cut off as Sinbad's mouth covered hers. Maeve's yelling at the hawk drew the attention of their friends, which stayed on the two watching their passionate embrace. When Sinbad and Maeve broke slowly apart from their kiss, neither was eager to move away from the other as their eyes locked.

After a few moments, Sinbad glanced at his brother asking, "Can you take the tiller for me, big brother? I have something to attend below." Getting emphatic agreement from the larger man, Sinbad and Maeve left the deck arm-in-arm.

As the captain and sorceress went through the door, Bryn's gaze moved to Dermott and she raised her arm in the gesture for him to come to her. When the hawk landed on her bracelet, she asked, _"Just how much did you have to do with that Dermott?"_

_"I don't know what you're asking, Bryn." _the hawk replied while fighting to hide the rest of his thoughts from his friend.

_"Yes you do!"_ Bryn was persistent. She'd always noticed that she felt more depth from Dermott's thoughts than what you'd expect from an animal. Thinking back on the past week, she realized that she'd picked up more feeling from his thoughts since Maeve's return. Narrowing her eyes slightly, the dark-haired sorceress asked, _"Dermott, what's really going on. Don't tell me nothing either. Are you really Maeve's hawk or what?"_

There were a few moments of silence, while the hawk cocked his head and held her dark gaze before answering. _"Don't say anything to the others about what I tell you. Sinbad knows because Maeve told him after returning, but neither one knows I'm telling you. I'm Maeve's brother…"_ Dermott continued to reveal part of his secret to the petite woman.

When he finished, Bryn stroked his chest feathers gently while thinking. _"Thank you, Dermott. I won't tell anyone until you and Maeve are ready to tell our shipmates. I, also, won't say anything to Maeve or Sinbad unless you've told them that I know."_

_Meanwhile, below deck_

Once they'd gotten down the stairs, Sinbad led Maeve to his cabin so they could talk without interruption. With the door closed, the sorceress sauntered over to the bed and sat down, followed by the captain's appreciative gaze.

Looking up at the handsome man, Maeve found herself getting lost in his clear blue eyes. Letting her gaze move over his face, she realized something. "You shaved!"

With a characteristic cocky grin crossing his features, Sinbad answered, "I was wondering when you'd notice. You've been busy with Bryn all morning and just barely said 'Good morning' to me."

"Well, I like it better than all the stubble and I'm glad I noticed without any hints." Having a slight frown furrow her brow, she asked, "What about your hair and clothes though?"

"Maeve, if you don't like my hair then you're going to have to cut it. That's one thing I can't do by myself." Sinbad answered with a grin, "And I thought that you liked this outfit?"

"Not like your old one. At least, you washed your hair; we'll worry about the length later. Now, why exactly did you bring me down here?"

"I think it's about time we had that talk, don't you? It might really be a good idea since we've got your brother's blessing now."

Maeve gave the captain a sly smile, while asking, "What about _your_ brother's blessing?"

Sinbad returned the smile, "I think we've had Doubar's blessing for the last three years, since we first met and everyone accepted you as a member of the crew. He could tell that you fascinated me from the beginning, even when we were fighting."

"You ought to know considering that Dermott's told me how much teasing you've had to endure from the others since keeping me as a member of the crew. "

"Yeah," Sinbad's grin was rueful, thinking of all the little jabs that Doubar and Firouz had sent his way, even before their kiss after he defeated the Vorgon. While deciding how best to approach talking to Maeve about his feelings for her, the captain began pacing back and forth nervously in front of the door. "Maeve, while you were gone, I did some things that I'm not proud of."

"Sinbad…." Maeve tried to assure him, but was interrupted by Sinbad before she could say more.

"No, please, let me finish," Sinbad stated intently. Realizing that her captain needed to tell her about what happened while she was gone, Maeve sat back. She was willing to listen, even though Bryn had already told her everything she needed to hear to forgive her love for his actions regarding any other women.

A half hour later found the young couple sitting beside each other on the edge of the bed. Sinbad took one of Maeve's hands in his and was relieved when she didn't pull away. He'd been open with her about everything that had happened while she was gone-from his actions in fighting, to how he'd acted toward any women they came across during that first year. He had his head lowered a bit, while saying, "That's about all that happened while you were gone. I missed you so much, Maeve. I know you're disappointed in me, but I, also, hope that you can forgive me. When you went over the side of the ship, I felt like the other half of my soul was being torn away, that's why I jumped in after you, even though, Doubar tried to stop me. Then, even after Dim-Dim said you were safe with him, I still felt like I was missing the best part of me."

When she was sure he was finished, Maeve reached over and, with her fingers at his chin, gently turned Sinbad's face toward hers. "Sinbad, there's nothing to forgive. You're forgetting that I could feel some of what you were going through. Especially when the feelings were so strong, such as when I was first swept overboard, I could feel how desperate you were to get me back on the ship. When Dim-Dim caught me in his spell, I felt a great sense of peace myself and then the same peace for you when he told you I was with him." Maeve paused for a breath and smiled as she continued, "Besides, Bryn already told me about you kissing her and your 'woman in every port' when I first got back on the _Nomad_, so I forgave you then and got over being angry since you never made a move to bring another woman aboard permanently, except for a good friend. I knew about most of them anyway, because we watched what was going on with the crew when we wanted and had time."

Sinbad finally relaxed, since Maeve took the story of what had been going on between him and the women he'd met in various ports over the last year and a half so well. With a twinkle in his eye and hope in his voice, the captain asked, "So I don't have to worry about getting any lectures from you about my behavior when you were gone? We can just move on into the future from here?"

"Perhaps, Sinbad." Maeve said with a mischievous smile on her beautiful face. "The lectures may depend on how you act if we ever meet any of those women again."

Glancing down sheepishly before meeting her eyes again, Sinbad replied, "Believe me, now that you're back none of them could ever get my attention unless I was forced. No one can hold a candle to my red-haired sorceress." He began to lean closer to her while speaking.

"Really?" at his agreeing nod, she continued, "Well, maybe you'll keep from getting into any trouble with me then. We'll just have to wait and see."

Maeve leaned toward Sinbad, seemingly to kiss him, but at the last second dodged his lips to kiss his cheek, then stood to head for the door.

The captain stared at her dumbfounded for seconds, before finding his voice, "Wait a minute. Where do you think you're going?"

Without turning around, so that he couldn't see the smile on her face, Maeve answered, "I've got to get back on deck to work with Bryn some more. Don't worry, we'll talk again later."

As she was opening the door, the sorceress began to chant a spell quietly. Before leaving the room completely, she turned toward the captain while finishing her spell and shot a bolt of magic toward him, then shut the door. She stayed outside for a few minutes, until she heard his shouted "Maeve!" then left giggling.

The captain could hear Maeve's chant, but couldn't make out the words. When she shot the magic at him, he automatically tensed, even though he knew that she wouldn't do anything to harm him. A reddish light swirled around him a minute, then vanished leaving changes in its wake. Looking down, then raising his hand to his head, Sinbad could tell that Maeve had used her magic to trim his hair back the way it was when they met, complete with headband, and change his clothes to his original outfit, the only difference being that the pants were leather in the same shade as his original loose pants. Trying to keep from laughing at how tricky _his_ sorceress was, Sinbad yelled her name, calming to a chuckle himself when he heard her giggles as she walked away from the door.

A little while later, the crew were busy with the running of the ship and Maeve and Bryn were concentrating on spell casting, when Sinbad returned to the deck. Maeve noticed that he still wore the clothes she'd put on him and hid a smile, which Bryn saw and followed the other woman's eyes to the source. Seeing the captain, she glanced back at Maeve and thought, _"Nice outfit and hair."_ Maeve answered with, _"Thanks, it's the same outfit that he used to wear with one exception."_

Rongar was working at mid-ship and nodded in approval at the captain's new look. Firouz exchanged glances with Doubar from their positions near the tiller. Doubar called out, "Nice change, little brother. Was it your idea or did you have some help."

Sinbad just gave them a mock glare on his way to confront his red-haired sorceress, instead of avoiding her as he realized now was what she did earlier, when he'd walked out in the middle of their first conversation. Reaching the bow of the _Nomad_, Sinbad nodded at Bryn before asking, "Maeve, what is the meaning of this outfit?"

The sorceress turned to study the handsome sailor, then replied, "I told you that I liked your old outfit better than the new one."

"Yes, but I never wore leather pants then, as you well know." Sinbad answered, with a smile.

With a smirk of her own, Maeve stated, "Well, I kind of like the look of those on you, but I do prefer the looser shirt and vest. Of course, the pants don't mean that every woman we meet can lay claim to you or there's going to be trouble."

Giving the women a mock bow, he said, "Thank you, kind sorceress, for answering my questions. The only problem is that we never finished our talk, but don't worry, Maeve. We will have the time, soon. That's a promise." Knowing that both women knew that he never consciously broke a promise, the captain saluted and turned to take the tiller from Doubar.


End file.
